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OPINION

Ohio editorial views

The work of policing in America is under scrutiny as never before, and that’s a good thing. The origin of the new attention — several high-profile, fatal encounters between police officers and citizens — is tragic, but if lessons are learned, such incidents can be reduced.

A civil society depends on having a police force that people trust and respect. When that bond frays, everyone is less safe.

Fair-minded people, in law enforcement and among the public, have to come to terms about how police should interact with the public and whether or not those standards are being met.

Even with perfect documentation, though, police and some in the public will see police/public conflicts differently. The best way to bridge the gap is through better communication.

Police work, on its worst days, is brutal and ugly. Police officers face challenges most people never do: hostile, violent people engaging in vile behavior. They are expected to manage out-of-control people and defuse situations without harming or offending anyone. Not surprisingly, they don’t always succeed.

Law-enforcement officials can’t just assume their officers operate free of bias and follow proper procedures; they need strong policies, training and documentation to be certain of it. And they need to make that information clear to the public, so it can be certain, too.

— The Columbus Dispatch

License plate issue is about treating everyone equally

We’re still getting letters to the editor saying Samuel DuBose would never have been stopped if he had simply followed the Ohio law requiring front license plates. Maybe. Or maybe University of Cincinnati officers practicing a stated policy of “aggressive policing” would have found another reason to stop him, such as a broken taillight or failing to use a turn signal.

The case for allowing drivers to be pulled over for a minor issue like a missing front plate is not one rooted in safety.

No, the license-plate question, at heart, is about whether everyone should be treated equally. Making a missing plate a primary offense for which officers can stop a motorist provides an excuse for law enforcement officials to pull over people based on their “gut.” The problem is, everyone’s gut is full of prejudices, depending on our individual experiences. The type and age of the car, the neighborhood and, yes, the race of the driver can all factor into an officer’s gut decision to make a stop — what many call “driving while black.”

Removing one reason to stop motorists for “driving while black” may be more symbolic than game-changing, but there is power in symbols.

— The Cincinnati Enquirer

Wake-up call for air traffic controllers

As many as three-quarters of the nation’s air traffic controllers work schedules that can leave them chronically fatigued and prone to potentially catastrophic errors, the Federal Aviation Administration was warned in 2011. But Americans are just finding out about it now.

The Associated Press recently obtained and published a report the FAA did not release despite months of requests. The agency’s unwillingness to provide the study is as disturbing as its findings, which suggest air travelers are imperiled by mistakes made by controllers whose schedules give them insufficient time to rest.

The FAA finally issued the report, conducted by NASA at the behest of the National Transportation Safety Board, after AP published its findings. Among the conclusions: Nearly one-third of controllers who worked a six-day schedule had committed a major error while directing air traffic in the previous year. More than half of them blamed fatigue ...

The nation’s air-traffic controllers, who direct 60 million planes each year, need to be as well rested as pilots. The report is a wake-up call for the FAA.